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2014 Packers Mock Draft, Final Edition, Part Deux

For one final time, Cheesehead TV provides a seven-round mock draft specifically for the Green Bay Packers.

Consider this the ying to Zach Kruse's yang. Whose do you like better? You won't hurt our feelings.

1.21 ILB RYAN SHAZIER, OHIO STATE

The Packers go with speed over power in selecting Shazier over Mosley. To be sure, Mosley is a weapon in his own right, but he doesn't have the quickness to shoot gaps, blitz and spy the quarterback or have the deep speed to run with tight ends down the seam that Shazier does. Shazier will need to be protected in order to be effective, and that will be the job of guys like B.J. Raji, Letroy Guion and Datone Jones up front. If they can free up Shazier to make plays, look out.

2.53 TE AUSTIN SEFERIAN-JENKINS, WASHINGTON

At 6' 5" Seferian-Jenkins becomes the tallest receiver on the Packers roster and probably signals the end of Jermichael Finley's run in Green Bay. Seferian-Jenkins takes over a similar role as a mobile tight end that can stretch the field and be a red-zone target. There are better blockers at the tight end position, but Seferian-Jenkins has the size to be an adequate blocker if he puts his mind to it. His arrest for DUI comes as a concern, but former Washington coach Steve Sarkisian speaks highly of his character and so far, it's been an isolated incident.

3.85 WR KEVIN NORWOOD, ALABAMA

Norwood would seem to be able to fill the shoes of James Jones rather capably. Like Jones, Norwood is a possession receiver with a knack for finding the end zone and having a rapport with his quarterback. With 4.48 speed in the 40-yard dash, he's also sneaky fast. While he played second-fiddle to Amari Cooper at Alabama, Norwood showed he can be the featured wideout at the Senior Bowl when he hauled in four passes for 53 yards and a touchdown. He's older than most rookies at 24 years old, but he's also ready to play immediately.

3.98 CB ANTONE EXUM, VIRGINIA TECH

Not unlike Micah Hyde a year ago, Exum feels as if he's a cornerback, but there's no shortage of observers that think he'll make a better safety, a position he played early in his career at Virginia Tech. At 6' 0" and 213 lbs., Exum definitely has the size to play safety. It was a trying senior season for the Virginia Tech product in 2013 coming off an ACL tear and then injuring his ankle after coming back, but when Exum was healthy as a junior, he was one of the best cornerbacks in the nation: 48 tackles, five interceptions, 16 pass break ups and two forced fumbles.

4.121 OL WESLEY JOHNSON, VANDERBILT

The ultimate jack of all trades, Johnson played tackle, guard and center in college and has the ability to play any of three in the NFL. He set a school record with 51 starts, the most in school history. And Johnson played a very high level, being named first-team All-SEC, the best conference in America, in 2013. He would provide instant competition to J.C. Tretter for the starting center position in Green Bay, and at the very least, be a versatile backup.

5.161 S MARQUESTON HUFF, WYOMING

The safety position is depleted in Green Bay, so the Packers take another player capable of adding depth. Another versatile defensive back, Huff played cornerback prior to switching to safety as a senior and could arguably play either position at the next level. Considered one of the best athletes to ever come out of Wyoming, Huff's 4.49 speed in the 40 showed he should be able to stay stride for stride with opposing receivers.

5.176 DL ANTHONY JOHNSON, LSU

Johnson was listed as being 310 lbs. as a freshman at LSU and believed to be even bigger. He weighed in at 308 lbs. at the Combine. Despite his size, Johnson still has good initial quickness that allowed him to make 22 career tackles for a loss at LSU. Nolan Nawrocki of NFL.com writes, "Character and stability need to be investigated," but if there's one place in the NFL that might bring out the best in Johnson, it could be in Green Bay where his cousin Eddie Lacy plays.

6.197 QB KEITH WENNING, BALL STATE

The Packers finally take their developmental fourth quarterback Mike McCarthy desires in the sixth round. The Packers should know Wenning plenty well after he made an official pre-draft visit to Green Bay. At 6' 3" and 218 lbs., Wenning has the ideal size for an NFL QB. He may have faced small-school competition in the MAC, but Wenning is as decorated as they come, holding school records for touchdowns and yards and directing 10 fourth-quarter comebacks in his career.

7.236 OLB KASIM EDEBALI, BOSTON COLLEGE

As a native of Germany, Edebali is still learning the game and just scratching the surface of what he could eventually become. As a senior, Edebali had the best year of his career, making 14 tackles for a loss and 8.5 sacks and should be able to build off that at the next level.

There are a couple of pretty big differences between Flynn & McCarron that have nothing to do with QB skills.

McCarron is 5 years younger and will be locked up for 4 years on a cheap deal. If they are the exact same player, those two things make it worth it to consider using a pick, IMO. 4 guaranteed years of a cheap deal for an acceptable backup QB sounds like a pretty good way to spend a pick to me. That 1st comp pick or later sounds about right for that.

I think I like Zach's better. I like Mosely more for GB because I don't trust Shaziers ability to shed blocks in the NFL and I don't trust the dline to give him a clear lane to the QB. I also like the fact that Zach includes a pure safety vs a cornerback who might be able to play the position and doesn't want to play the position.

The Packers have a problem in the NFC. The problem is Kaepernic and Wilson. They both like to run. And they will break your back picking up a third and long. It's part of their game plan. Kaepernic, Wilson, Seahawks and 49ers aren't going away any time soon.

The Packers have to find a way to stop them and get off the field on third down. Shazier would be the best way to stop them since they are so fast. Kaepernic and Wilson are both 4.5 guys.

If it weren't for Kaepernic and Wilson, I'd say Mosley all the way. I'm not saying Mosley is slow......but Kaepernic and Wilson are just too fast.

Maybe the Packers think they upgrade at safety to stop them. I don't know. But this draft has to address team speed on defense. Mosley will help the Packers win regular season games, but is he fast enough to keep Wilson and Kaepernic in check when the playoffs arrive? I don't think he his.

Edit: Keep in mind that Mosley's 4.63 is from his pro day. He didn't run at combine. Almost everybody runs faster at their pro day. Mosley probably would have run a a 4.68-4.70 at the combine at best. That's not slow, but Wilson and Kaepernic aren't slow either.

I certainly am all on board with getting more speed in the LB group for the precise reason you mention. A good, fast LB group is the best way to contain mobile QBs.

But keep in mind that 40 speed is not necessarily indicative of the speed at which a player plays. AJ Hawk ran a 4.59 (or something close). His workout numbers cemented his status as a top-10 prospect. As it turns out, he sure doesn't play that fast.

Out of curiosity what round would be a good place for the Pack to take Wisky's Jared Abbrederis I'm leaning toward the fifth round with the comp pick, what do you think, I haven't seen any mocks that say where he could end up and with his ability to return kicks and punts I think he'd be a great fourth receiver for the pack.

Just for kicks who do you guys think TT will pick at #21? Not who you wish he would pick, but who do you actually think he WILL pick? I know we don't know who will be available but just take a guess. My guess:
#21 - Kyle Fuller DB

Honestly I think TT will trade the pick and move back about five spots or so picking up an extra pick or two, and then take the most NFL ready Defensive player on their board, I think it will be Mosley, who may still be available due to the injury history.

I don't think TT will end up picking a guy that a whole bunch of mock drafters think he'll pick. That would eliminate Shazier and Mosley, who would appear to be 1a and 1b among the mock draft consensus.

TT puts a premium on guys that play in the trenches. So NT or OT would be my suspicion. The draft industrial complex says that Louis Nix is the only NT type with that kind of grade. So if I had to put money on one guy, I guess he's as good a choice as any.

The explanation why he was good before and bad now is he got comfortable with his life. How big was his rookie contract? I don't know but I think it is a safe bet that he's banked $10 mil+ after taxes. Lots of guys start coasting after that sort of thing. It is human nature for a lot of people.

I would also say you're over-stating (by a lot) how well Raji performed in 2010-2011. Relative to the nothing-burger he was in 2013, maybe it is accurate to call his 2010 season "huge". But I don't grade on a curve like that.

So there are my cards for 'lazy and unmotivated'. Simple human nature.

Now, explain how a guy that gets constantly eaten alive by blockers at DE is going to reverse that when he sets up 1-2 yards closer to middle of the field. The only explanations I can dream up sound satirical.

I don't think the "got comfortable with his life" argument makes sense. So, he gets drafted in 2009, pockets a ton of money and then 4 years later decides to start coasting?

Again, the simplest explanation is the position change. Whether or not it's true, I don't know. But if we're talking occam's razor, that's more logical than delving into his psychological makeup and motivation.

As for his huge 2010 season, I base that on other NTs. I know it's not all about sacks, but 6.5 from a 3-4 NT is pretty nuts (plus 39 tackles and 3 passes defended). The best NTs (Vince Wilfork, Casey Hampton) don't get half that many sacks in a season. Ngata's best season is 5.5. He was a force that year.

You're right that he had a lot of sacks. And the huge pick 6 in the NFC CG. Big time play at a big time moment. But I remember it being flashes, not consistent. Maybe my memory is a bit off.

Either way, you're right that I hope Raji plays like that again this year. Wherever the truth lies about his play in 2010, I think that exact same thing would be a huge upgrade and a huge help to the defense overall.

We'll have to agree to disagree about the rest. And wait for the season to unfold to find out what happens next with him.

And really, between the two of us, you're the one showing less understanding of DE vs NT in a 3-4. NT gets more focus from the opposing offensive line than DE does. So if Raji can't defeat blocks when getting less focus, how is moving to an area of more focus going to make him more effective?

The only rational answer is it might motivate him to play harder and unleash his talent. Which has been my point all along. That the only thing hindering Raji is Raji himself. Not "playing out of position"

A few thoughts:
- I think this has it right that the Packers could wait a while before drafting a true S
- While I like Exum as a player, I'm not fond of picking more versatile dudes, we just got Hyde last year, let's pick some guys who know how to do one thing and know how to do it well
- I generally dislike the QB selections from both you and Zach. If you're going to take one that late, don't bother. Just do an UDFA, because you're not serious about having a good backup for 2015 after Flynn leaves for good. (And Tolzien is NOT an NFL QB). I know Ron Wolf used to do it, but he proved to be basically the only GMs to find value there on a relatively consistent basis.

I went to Fanspeak's On the Clock simulator and selected all 4 available draft board to do a 7 round mock draft. I did what the Packers should do...trust the board. I only picked a guy that was a "value", ie rated higher than the pick I was making. Among those possible choices, I did pick based on the current roster and earlier picks.

SI just ran an article about the Ravens where the team brass basically agrees the draft is more about luck than anything else. Their entire offseason approach is predicated on ensuring maximum picks. They plan on guys moving on every year and don't sign guys that will eat into the compensatory picks to offset those losses.

Their belief is the "draft guru" GMs are no better than most at picking players. Those guys usually make more picks and thus produce more players while still "hitting" at the same rate as everyone else.

Simple math. If everyone hits 50% (for example), the guy that makes 8 picks found 4 players while the guy that makes 12 picks found 6 of them.

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